The added security of the eight-year contract extension he signed in the offseason further empowered Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler to take on a leadership role with the team. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

ANAHEIM — It is the first letter of the Latin alphabet and takes residence throughout our lexicon so its importance is inherent. But the capitalized version is rather simplistic on the surface, two slanting lines meeting at an apex and connected by a horizontal line that forms much of its triangular shape.

Affix that to a hockey sweater and it takes on a significance that often commands respect, particularly with a team and its locker room.

Cam Fowler wore the “A” that represents the Ducks’ alternate captain for Sunday’s exhibition game against Vegas. He has done it on occasion in the past and will do so again, perhaps as long as the injured Ryan Kesler remains out of the lineup.

No final decision has been made on that, though Ducks coach Randy Carlyle considers him a certain candidate who’s under consideration. But as long as the letter appears on his jersey, Fowler sees it as an honor that he won’t take lightly.

“It’s a huge responsibility,” Fowler said Monday. “To me, I look at the guys around the league that have the opportunity to wear it. It’s core players, it’s guys that represent the team to their best ability on and off the ice.

“When I had the opportunity to wear it last year, it was special. To some guys, it might not mean a whole lot. But to me, it kind of means I’ve earned the respect of my coaching staff and the players around me. To me, that’s something that’s pretty cool.”

The Ducks have Ryan Getzlaf as their longtime captain, with Kesler and Corey Perry serving as the alternates. When either alternate is out of the lineup, another wears an “A” and Fowler has been among those to do so. But it isn’t far-fetched to think he might one day adorn a letter full-time, perhaps even the cherished “C” to succeed Getzlaf.

Fowler is a fixture, not only as the head of their defense. An eight-year contract extension that he and the Ducks agreed upon in July makes it so following other summers where his future with the team was defined by a question mark and not an exclamation point.

The added security further empowers him to take on a leadership role that he felt comfortable to begin taking on four years into the NHL.

“You have to really earn your kicks in this league and you have to go through some of those learning curves, which I certainly did,” Fowler said. “A lot of that prepared me for where I am now. I feel like the team around me, especially on the back end, that’s a point of leadership for me. Someone who’s been here for a while, who knows what’s expected out of us personally and out of the team.

“Yeah, it’s a special thing. It did take me a while to grow into that role. I’ve said it, I’m not a huge rah-rah locker room guy. But I like to lead by example on the ice and I need to make sure I’m the best that I can be night in and night out. Hopefully guys will follow that.”

Entering his eighth season with the only team he’s played for, Fowler said he now feels “more comfortable in my own skin” than when he came to the Ducks straight from the draft and junior hockey at 18. He’s still hard on himself and errors he makes but now finds it easier to just “play hockey and have fun.”

Carlyle sees the physical growth of Fowler – “He was 185 and now he’s 215,” he gushes – from when he had him as a rookie. Teamed with him again last season, the coach is just as impressed with the mental growth of his defenseman.

“I think he looks at himself – and when you’re around the other guys – and says, “Hey, why not me?” Carlyle said. “Why not? And that’s really encouraging when you have people like that. That’s the natural progression that you’d like your young players, as they grow in the game, to accept the responsibilities that come with it. Those are outside of the norm.”

EAVES HOBBLING

Patrick Eaves remains off the ice to deal with a lower-body injury that Carlyle said is not related to the ankle and foot issues that ended his season in the second round of the playoffs.

Eaves has yet to play in the preseason and any appearance in the Ducks’ final two games might now be in question. Carlyle wasn’t ready to say that he’s doubtful for either Thursday’s game against San Jose or Saturday’s road contest against the Kings, noting that he’s got three more days to improve.

“We’d like to see him skate in a practice before playing in the game, for sure,” Carlyle said.

OFFENSIVE OUTBURST

Nick Ritchie scored twice and Rickard Rakell got the tiebreaking goal in the third period for a 6-4 win over Arizona in an exhibition played in Tucson, Ariz.

Rakell beat Coyotes backup Marek Langhamer as the Ducks scored their six goals in the final two periods. Ritchie added some insurance with his second of the night.

Ritchie and Logan Shaw each scored shorthanded goals in the second to forge a 2-2 tie. Arizona’s Dylan Strome and Mario Kempe built another two-goal lead but Brandon Montour got the Ducks back within one. Andrew Cogliano would get credit for creating a 4-4 tie with a deflection of Marcus Pettersson’s point shot.